WagonsOnly Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 Hi all, My fiance is looking at purchasing a gently-used Baja in the greater Hartford area and we both have a couple of questions on them--so if anyone has any pertinent information (either on what we've asked or what we should know), it would be greatly appreciated. Otherwise, she can't wait to get it and I can't wait to borrow it. 1. Has anyone had a head gasket or auto tranny failure on a Baja? If so, what year and how many miles? 2. What experience have you had with accessories? Are the caps easy to remove? Can they be used easily with a bed extender or is it a pain to have both installed at once? If you have a tonneau cover, is it hard or soft? Do the soft ones hold up under snow? (We won't have a garage for at least another year. :-\) 3. How well does the interior hold up? 4. How well-made are the exterior trim bits? And does anyone have any rust showing yet? 5. What else do we need to know? Thanks all so much! Andrew Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 The only one I cant answer is the accerroies. The engines transmission and other tidbits hold up just as well as any other subaru (meaning expect 200K or more out of it if well maintaned). As with any AWD car, make sure all the tires match, and drive it in a tight circle on level ground. The car should be able to move itself with no or very little throttle. This test is easy as if it fails it will need alot of throttle to move. The movement should be smooth. A slight bump at the start of it is ok as the computer figures out the car is turning. Good luck. BTW I have only seen these in yellow, has anyone seen one in any other color? nipper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flowmastered87GL Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 1. 2005 Sport (non turbo) 52K. No head gasket issues yet, manual tranny, 2. Bed extender is great, not sure if it works with other caps and such. The stock soft subaru cover is said to tear easily. 3. Interior looks good, I think the foam on the passenger seat is a little bunched up underneath the upolstry because the wife drags her @$$ over it or something But my driver seat looks more or less new still. 4. Exterior looks good. nothing falling off, have some rock chips though, the paint is kinda thin. What is this rust you speak of, none here in Oregon 5. Other notes.... a 3X8 sheet of plywood can be carried in the back, but a full sheet is kinda hard. The lifters can be kinda noisy on cold mornings. Studless snow tires are the shiznit when its nasty out Thats alot of snow for the portland metro area, did really good, never got fully stuck, but bogged down afew times. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 Is there a baja board, I bet there is one like the XT, SVX, Outback, etc boards? If you find out answers to your quesiton from anywhere else, post it here, be a good thread for future Baja owners. Matt, Subeman90, owns one he'll probably chime in. Baja is a 4 letter word so the search function should be friendly to you unlike all the SVX, XT6, WRX, etc owners!! I haven't heard of any significant issues. You won't see many major complaints now, head gasket or otherwise. Not many baja owners and many are still under warranty or they're so highly valued repair costs are benign. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
86subaru Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 my brother has one and lovers it, no problems at all 105,000mi and got it new, and he takes it to the dealer for all work, oil changes , timing belt etc... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WagonsOnly Posted July 18, 2009 Author Share Posted July 18, 2009 Thanks for all the quick replies. We're not new to Subarus (although she's coming from a '97 Toyota T100...ANYthing is an improvement at this point!), but I've never had a "new" gen Subie save for a '93 Legacy a couple of years ago. Gary, Matt was kind enough to toss me the keys to his Baja Sport at the '06 Carlisle meet...I was hooked then, fortunately Megan loved the test drives she took yesterday almost as much. (I think.) The only things I'm really worried about are the reputations for head gaskets and the 4EAT (as she either can't or won't drive a stick). '87GL - gee thanks, I almost forgot you guys didn't have rust. :-( I love the plate, though - CT DMV says it's still available out in our neck of the woods, too, if you don't mind a little imitation-as-flattery Also, would any of you happen to have any experience mounting kayaks, bicycles, or cartop carriers? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bucky92 Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 Thule and Yakima make racks for about every vehicle out there and every sport also. I am using a Thule Side Arm for my bike on my 08 Impreza...its a nice small rack that only takes seconds to load the bike..without removing the wheels. They also make bed attachments if you want to mount it in the bed instead of the roof. I see quite a few Bajas around here with these on the roof. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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